The score of a person playing golf is the total of shots required to move the ball from the tee along the fairway, shots required to chip the ball onto the green and shots required to putt the ball into the cup. For an average golfer, shots required to putt the ball into the cup, after the green has been reached, accounts for more than one-half of the total strokes on each hole.
The primary emphasis of golf ball manufacturers is to provide a ball which travels the maximum distance along a predictable path when it is struck with a golf club. Golf balls are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,783,078; U.S. Pat. No. 4,921,255 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,020,803, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. The golf balls disclosed in these patents are generally referred to as a wound or three-piece golf ball comprising a cover molded about a core that has been built up from a center around which elastic thread has been wound.
One-piece golf balls are sometimes formed of a homogeneous mass of thermoset or thermoplastic material. Two-piece golf balls are generally formed from a solid homogeneous core around which a cover is molded.
The preference of individual golfers for one-piece, two-piece or wound golf balls varies from one golfer to another. However, all golfers strive to minimize the number of strokes required to put the ball in the hole.
Blanchard U.S. Pat. No. 3,357,705 discloses a golf practice projectile for use in practicing tee and fairway shots. The device is intended for use by golfers to practice and improve their abilities at the game of golf. However, such devices do not generally improve the golfer's putting skills.
A long felt need exists for a device to aid the golfer in perfecting putting skills. Golf club manufacturers provide putters having club heads of various designs and shafts of varying lengths. Lines are formed on some putters to aid the golfer in aligning the face of the putter, the ball and the hole in an effort to improve putting efficiency.